


Early Bird Gets The Trauma

by Crewgen



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Excessive Drinking, Hurt/Comfort, Other, Seizures, Substance Abuse, Vomiting, graphic description of seizures, set when yang and ruby are kids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-28
Updated: 2019-03-28
Packaged: 2019-12-25 16:45:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18265361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crewgen/pseuds/Crewgen
Summary: " Dad, there's something wrong with Uncle Qrow! "





	Early Bird Gets The Trauma

**Author's Note:**

> The situation with Qrow is something called Status Epilepticus, which is something that can occur with excessive drinking and/or drinking after alcohol withdrawal, and can be life threatening.

“Dad, something’s wrong with Uncle Qrow! ”

Ruby hadn’t expected to wake up the way she had. Looking round the room, she had noticed that Yang was still asleep, sound asleep in her bed with the stuffed dragon Taiyang had gotten her for her 6th birthday. The shattered moon shone brightly into their shared room, and Ruby was suddenly aware of the reason she had woken up.

The constant thudding upstairs.

Ruby knew Tai had left them with their favorite Uncle Qrow. She had often been woken up to similar sounds before. Ruby knew that their uncle struggled with issues, and as much as she had difficulty understanding them and her uncle’s actions when he was stressed, she knew he did something that Tai and Yang called pacing.

With tiny hands, Ruby began to shake her sister awake, making a little whine in the process when she realized her efforts were failing. “Yaaaang, Uncle Qrow is circle walking again.” She shook her again, shaking her a bit harder this time. A proud grin spread to her lips as her sister began to shift, slowly moving to sit up with a yawn. “Rubes, go back to bed, it’s-” Yang had seemed to realize the cause of Ruby waking her up, looking out at the hallway through their open door with a confused look. “Is dad here?” She moved to get up, yawning a little as she took her sister’s hand, walking towards the door so they could investigate the noises together. Once out of their room and out in the hallway, Yang began to lead the two downstairs where the sound was strongest. The closest they got to the bottom of the stairs, the more confused they began to get. Alongside the thudding was another nose. Yang realized the first noise as a hand repeatedly slapping against something, but didn't quite understand the other sound.

_Gurgling?_

Before turning the corner, Ruby gave a confused noise as she listened, holding her hand tighter, and Yang returned the action as she went to follow the noise. “Ruby, stay behind me, okay?” She looked back at Ruby, which the latter of the two opted to just hold onto her gown as Yang began to walk to the kitchen. She noticed the lights were off in the kitchen, and that the sound was definitely coming from in here. Now just to find the light switch. And so, Yang began to walk against the wall, Ruby close behind her as she held tighter onto her. 

When did the ground get wet? Did Uncle Qrow mop? Why was it just the area around the light switch? Was that piece of glass my foot nudged? Once the switch had been found, and flicked up to turn on, Yang and Ruby both flinched a bit from the light. Once their eyes adjusted, both pairs of eyes widened in horror at the sight that lied out in front of them.

Qrow lied on the floor sprawled out in front of them, but it was different than when he was normally sprawled out from drinking too much. No, this was much different.

He was convulsing. 

Strong spasms of muscles throughout his body, the constant movement of his palm slapping against the cool tiled floor of their home, the distant look and twitching from his eye, and the strange sound Yang now realizes as Qrow choking on what looked to be his vomit, being the small trail Yang noticed leading to the small mess of more vomit and drool mixed down on the floor next to his head. His teeth were clenched around his tongue, and once the shock wore off, Yang noticed it was bleeding. A lot, for a matter of fact. That can’t be good.

“Go call Dad!"

That seemed to wake Ruby out of the scared and confused daze she was in, and she quickly ran off with a cry as she searched for the house scroll. She was confused. What was going on with Uncle Qrow? This wasn't his normal pacing she often woke up to. What was this? Why wasn’t dad helping? Where was dad? These questions ran through Ruby’s young mind as she quickly picked up the scroll once she had sound it, quickly pressing the key that had Taiyang’s name over it before she ran to the couch, hiding behind it as she waited nervously for Tai to answer. It didn’t take long for the sound of his voice to run through her ears. Comfort. But this isn't time for comfort, this is a time of emergency. 

“Dad, something’s wrong with Uncle Qrow!”

Tai didn’t need much more convincing. Hearing the panic written all in her voice, shaking with the urge of wanting to cry everything he needed to hear before hanging up and quickly starting his trip home. 

At hearing his voice now gone, Ruby quickly made her way into the kitchen with the dragon Yang had dropped tightly clutched within her tiny pale hands, trembling as they held the stuffed toy close. She had noticed how Yang had moved over to Qrow, now holding his head firmly between her hands as it rested in her lap. She still looked scared, but it seemed she was trying to stay calm as she tried to get Qrow to just open his mouth. Ruby whimpered from her place at the door, staring wide eyes at the scene. What was happening? Why didn't Ruby understand? Where was dad?

It seemed that only moments after that thought, which had really been minutes, the sound of the door slamming opening had sounded throughout the house, and the abrupt flash of yellow and shouts of the same comforting voice that was now far from the sound of comfort were telling the two girls to go and call for help. Ruby couldn't move, but that changed as Yang ran to her, picking her up and running out into the living room. The feeling of the comfortable and warm couch soothed her a bit, but she looked to Yang with a whimper, the tears still in her eyes as she shook. Why was Uncle Qrow shaking? 

Taiyang had managed to get Qrow to open his mouth swearing as he quickly replaced his wallet for him to bite onto as a replacement for his tongue, which Tai was sure would need to be stitched or medically glued back together. His aura couldn't handle that in this state. He felt sick at the smells in the room, the strong scent of the alcohol Qrow always drank from his small flask, the smell of musk from the coldweats Qrow was giving off, the strong stench of the vomit and the sickening amount Qrow seemed to be choking on as it spilled from his mouth when Tai pulled and rolled him onto his side, the smell of urine and the unmistakable coppery smell of blood. Gentle words of reassurance and and comfort escape his lips as Qrow starts to calm down, his seizing stopping to instead just be the constant hit of his palm against the floor as he still continued to fully stop and still, gasping in breaths and still gurgling slightly as he coughed a bit more vomit mixed with blood and drool out from the spaces the walled didn't quite fit fully. Tai didn't care, he'd buy a new wallet. Qrow slowly began to muster words, the wallet falling from his mouth before fully losing consciousness. IN a rough and choked tone, Qrow mustered out a quiet cry of Tai’s name before going limp as the medical team of Patch finally arrived. Ruby watched as her uncle was carried away on the stretcher by the men dressed in light yellow uniforms, and continued to watch as Taiyang lifted her up along with Yang and rushing out of the house to their car. Her eyes never left the direction Qrow was carried off. It'll be okay. He’ll be okay. Everything will be okay. These words left Tai’s mouth as they followed the ambulance, his voice calm and nervous for his girls as he spoke. Comfort.

Why didn't Ruby understand what was going on?


End file.
